My Online Date is My Roommate - Chapter 9

Because Jiang Mingbo had stayed up late the night before, he was the last one in the dorm to wake up. Tan Rui was already seated at his desk, gaming. Seeing Jiang stir, he spoke up immediately, “Bo-er, why so late today?”

Jiang Mingbo’s complexion wasn’t great. He forced himself to get out of bed. “Didn’t sleep well last night…”

Fortunately, Tan Rui was too busy with his game to press further. Jiang Mingbo turned his head and caught a glimpse of Fei Wenxu’s screen, he was already in the game. Passing behind Fei on the way to wash up, Jiang discreetly noted his coordinates, then slipped into the bathroom and logged in immediately.

He was going to make this “chance encounter” happen today, no matter what!

Once in the game, he rushed toward Fei’s location. Finding him busy slaying a boss for a quest, Jiang Mingbo stayed at a distance and immediately began chopping a nearby tree.

A chance encounter must appear effortless.

Fei Wenxu was already at max level, so the boss was no trouble. He finished it in a few strikes, sheathed his sword, and was about to fly away when he spotted a familiar nickname.

In the distance, a character named “Little Fishy” was buried in work, chopping away. Her gear was rudimentary the basic starter outfit and shield. Definitely a newbie.

A newbie, and named Little Fishy? He had to stop.

Nearby: Fish: [Little Fishy?]

Jiang Mingbo almost laughed out loud in the bathroom stall. Haha, the fish finally bit! All that hard work wasn’t for nothing!

Just as he was about to reply, Tan Rui’s voice came from outside the door. “Bo-er, you done in there?”

Jiang Mingbo nearly dropped his phone into the toilet. He frantically locked his screen, flushed, and opened the door, grumbling, “I can’t even use the bathroom without you rushing me? Are you the King of Urgency?”

Tan Rui clutched his stomach. “I think I ate something bad last night. My stomach is killing me!”

Jiang Mingbo quickly washed his hands and scrambled back onto his bed, reopening the game.

Nearby: Fish: [Speak up.] Nearby: Little Fishy: [Eh?]

Realizing he had to stick to his persona someone who wasn’t yet “besties” with Fei Wenxu, he played dumb.

Nearby: Little Fishy: [Are you that roommate classmate?]

He didn’t use a name, but Fei Wenxu understood. He chuckled to himself. The map was massive, yet they kept meeting like this. It almost felt like she was stalking him.

Nearby: Fish: [Yes. What are you doing here?] Nearby: Little Fishy: [Developing my life skill. I think I picked the wrong class. My sub-profession can only chop wood and mine. Everyone has those skills, so it feels useless.] Nearby: Fish: [Once you level up, you can craft specific items. Plus, your luck for rare drops in wood and ore is higher than other players. Pros and cons.]

As if I didn’t know that! Jiang rolled his eyes internally. Outwardly, he acted enlightened.

Nearby: Little Fishy: [Oh~ I see. I thought it was a waste. Where did you pop up from?] Nearby: Fish: [Doing a quest.]

Now that they were talking, it would be weird not to add him. Jiang Mingbo played it cool.

Nearby: Little Fishy: [What a coincidence. Let’s add each other. I’ll ask you if I run into things I don’t understand.] Nearby: Fish: [Sure.] Nearby: Little Fishy: [Are you in a guild?] Nearby: Fish: [Yes.] Nearby: Little Fishy: [Pull me in! It’s more fun with people I know.]

Fei Wenxu hesitated. Tan Rui was in the guild and knew about the drama between this girl and Jiang Mingbo. He wasn’t afraid of Tan Rui overthinking it, but the guy was such a blabbermouth that he’d likely exaggerate the situation and cause unnecessary trouble.

Nearby: Fish: [I don’t have the permissions.]

Jiang Mingbo nearly cursed. Keep pretending, you fake jerk!

Nearby: Little Fishy: [Oh… I saw the Leader of the #1 guild is named Fish. I thought I’d found a sugar daddy. Turns out this game allows duplicate names~]

Jiang Mingbo fired back with sarcasm. You want to play dumb? Two can play that game!

Nearby: Fish: […] Duplicate names are allowed. Nearby: Little Fishy: [Is that Leader you?]

Fei Wenxu felt a rare moment of embarrassment. He didn’t even know why he’d used such a lame excuse; he could have just said no.

Nearby: Fish: [It’s me.] Nearby: Little Fishy: [I knew it! Whatever, if you don’t want me there, forget it. I don’t want to be there anyway!]

He added Fei Wenxu as a friend, and the request was accepted instantly. Jiang Mingbo wasn’t in a hurry anymore you can’t get fat off one bite. Fei was sharp; being too pushy would raise suspicions. He decided to hold his ground.

Jiang Mingbo logged off and went to the library to finish his horticulture assignments. By dinner time, he returned to the dorm. Tan Rui was still gaming. “Bo-er! You’re out-grinding me again!”

“I was doing homework,” Jiang said.

Tan Rui slapped his forehead. “Crap! I forgot about the assignment! Is everyone else done?”

Fei Wenxu’s face was expressionless. “Done.” Yu Xuan nodded. “Had an AI help me.”

Tan Rui looked devastated. “So I’m the only one? Bo-er, why didn’t you remind me?”

Jiang Mingbo looked at him. “You said you were going to ask Fei Wenxu for his, so I thought you were finished…”

“That’s your excuse for betraying a brother?” Tan Rui wailed.

Jiang ignored him and grabbed his things for a shower. Before he could leave, Tan Rui blocked him. “Wait! Bo-er, you can’t let me die! I don’t dare copy Fish-ge’s work. I can’t even understand his notes; the professor would know instantly if I copied him.”

Even though he knew Tan Rui spoke without thinking, Jiang Mingbo felt a surge of annoyance. In everyone’s eyes, he was just the “correct” answer, while Fei Wenxu was the “standard.” The realization stung. He snapped at Tan Rui, “Screw off!”

Fei Wenxu glanced at him briefly upon hearing the tone.

Tan Rui, thick-skinned as ever, kept begging. Finally, Jiang Mingbo moodily pulled out his work. “Change the steps a bit.”

“Yes, sir!” Tan Rui saluted and dashed off.

Jiang Mingbo didn’t engage in their usual banter. He silently headed to the bathroom. Coming out, he locked eyes with Fei Wenxu, who was brushing his teeth on the balcony. Seeing Jiang’s low mood, Fei’s lips curled into a faint, contemptuous smirk.

Jiang Mingbo was certain he hadn’t imagined it.

Fei Wenxu On the surface, he was generous and kind to everyone, but in reality, he looked down on everybody. Jiang Mingbo looked away. He couldn’t let his guard down.

Laugh all you want, he cursed silently. Just wait until you’re begging me for a second chance!

Back in bed, he sent another guild application and checked his friend list. Only one contact: Fish.

The icon was grey. Fei was offline. Jiang glared at the icon, then went back to studying his sub-profession. He had chopped a lot of wood today and could now craft various small items. Scrolling down the list, he found a bizarre option: Make a Coffin.

A coffin!? Jiang Mingbo’s jaw dropped. Was the game really this realistic? Who would need a coffin?

He had plenty of wood and stamina, so out of curiosity, he clicked the option. Right there in the wilderness, he started building a coffin.

He stared at the black box in front of him, puzzled. What is this for? Decoration?

Just then, a black-clad swordsman flew down from his sword and approached.

Nearby: Lazy Boss: [Hello. Is the coffin for sale?]

Jiang Mingbo frowned. Why would you buy this? He didn’t have time to check a guide.

Nearby: Little Fishy: [Hello. Can I ask what this is for? I just started yesterday, I’m not sure…] Nearby: Lazy Boss: [An NPC in a later dungeon will ask for one.]

Nearby: Little Fishy: [I see. It’s for sale. How much?] Nearby: Lazy Boss: [I’ll give you the trade union price: 5,000 gold.]

Jiang Mingbo raised an eyebrow. Five thousand? That’s five bucks! This thing is actually worth something.

Nearby: Little Fishy: [Sold! Right now!]

They added each other and completed the trade. The guy was Level 80, likely a newbie himself, or an alt account.

Little Fishy: [How long have you been playing?] Lazy Boss: [Over a year. This is an alt. I don’t play much during work hours, and my main is busy, so I’m on this one.] Little Fishy: [Ah, I see.] Lazy Boss: [You’re a pure newbie?] Little Fishy: [Yeah. I’ve only watched videos before. Just joined a few days ago.] Lazy Boss: [Need a carry? Since you sold me a coffin, I can help you out.] Little Fishy: [No thanks, I’ll figure it out. Do I look like I need a carry? But I have a question, what’s with the ‘Golden Phoebe Coffin’ at the bottom of the list? Can you actually make those?] Lazy Boss: [Just a setting. Golden Phoebe is impossible to farm. No one would waste it on a coffin. Supposedly, giving one to that NPC triggers a secret dungeon, but no one’s done it. The game is too big; not everything has been explored yet.] Little Fishy: [Ridiculous!] Lazy Boss: [It is. But your class has a natural advantage for finding it. If you’re bored, you could try. If you actually make one, can you save it for me? I’ll pay 100,000 gold over the market price.] Little Fishy: [No problem, brother. Just for your help today, it’s yours.] Lazy Boss: [Are you a ‘trap’ (man playing a female character)?]

Jiang Mingbo broke into a cold sweat. Was I not acting feminine enough? He played dumb.

Little Fishy: [What’s a trap?] Lazy Boss: [Never mind. I thought you were a guy.] Little Fishy: [Eh? Why?] Lazy Boss: [You talk like a guy.]

Jiang Mingbo made a mental note to think twice before every message from now on.

Little Fishy: [Do I? I always talk like this.] Lazy Boss: [Fair enough. Good luck farming. Remember my coffin!] Little Fishy: [You got it, Boss.]

After that interaction, Jiang Mingbo actually started enjoying the game. He found the Golden Phoebe coordinates and headed to the teleport. When he reached the steep cliffs of Zhangjiajie, he froze.

Where’s the path?

He checked a guide. Two minutes later, cursing the developers, he started the climb. His class lacked agility and relied on raw strength; every foothold mattered. He moved slowly, watched other players especially swordsmen zip past him.

But Jiang Mingbo was stubborn. He eventually reached the spot and began chopping. After a while, he had a pile of common wood, but the system pinged: Insufficient Stamina.

He hadn’t bought potions beforehand. He didn’t want to climb back down. He checked his friends list. Fei was still offline, but Lazy Boss was on.

Little Fishy: [Emergency! Help!] Lazy Boss: [What? Ambushed by ghosts? Wrapped by a giant snake?] Little Fishy: [What are you talking about?] Lazy Boss: [Then what’s the emergency?] Little Fishy: [I’ve been chopping too long. Out of stamina and I didn’t bring pills…] Lazy Boss: [Didn’t you read the guide?] Little Fishy: [Not the fine print… Help me out! Gift me some pills!]

If they were friends, he could receive the gift without losing his position on the mountain. Jiang Mingbo shamelessly asked for the favor.